


Submerge

by evilwriter37



Category: DreamWorks Dragons (Cartoon), How to Train Your Dragon (Movies)
Genre: Bathing/Washing, Gen, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III Has PTSD, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-10
Updated: 2021-03-10
Packaged: 2021-03-17 11:29:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 819
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29965695
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/evilwriter37/pseuds/evilwriter37
Summary: After the events of Dire Straits, Hiccup is afraid to go near water again, even if that water is just sitting in a tub.
Relationships: Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III & Toothless
Comments: 8
Kudos: 28





	Submerge

Hiccup stood before the tub of steaming water, towel held in front of him. He’d picked a time where the bathhouse wouldn’t be full: the middle of the night. He was alone, and Toothless had heated the cooled water for him. Well, he was alone save for Toothless. He’d brought him with him because - he would never admit this to anyone - he was scared. He was scared of submerging himself in water. It’d been a week since he’d nearly drowned in the diving bell, a week riddled with pneumonia and pain. He hadn’t been in water since. He’d allowed it near him so that he could drink it, but that was it. 

But now that he was mostly feeling better, he desperately needed a bath. He wanted one as much as he didn’t want one. Taking a bath would mean getting in the water, putting his head under to wash his hair. Would it be too much like drowning? 

Angered with himself for this reaction, Hiccup dropped the towel, undid his prosthetic, and began to lower his scarred stump into the tub. He froze at the touch of the water on his skin, at the way his stump looked in it. 

He took a deep breath. He could see the bottom of the tub. A little further and he would be touching it. It wasn’t like he was trapped at the bottom of the sea, with sunlight so far overhead and hidden to him by the confines of the diving bell. 

With his hands gripping either side of the tub, Hiccup slowly lowered himself in. His chest began to heave with panicked breaths as more of his body became submerged. Then he was in it up to his neck and he felt like he was choking and suffocating. Any minute now the water would go over his head, and it would be around him, in him, and he would die. 

He began raising himself out of the tub, hurriedly, sloshing water out of it. Then he stopped, thought for a moment, and stubbornly lowered himself back in. This was a tub of hot, fresh water, not the all-encompassing salt water of the sea. It was just a bath.

Toothless came over, rumbling empathetically. Once Hiccup was in the tub again, he reached out a hand, felt Toothless’ scales against his palm. That calmed him greatly. In the diving bell, he’d tried to reach through the window for Toothless, but couldn’t get through, couldn’t feel his familiar scales and his warmth. But this was different. So different. Toothless was here with him, here to stay, and he was just watching him take a bath, not watching him die. 

“I can do this, I can do this,” Hiccup told himself. And, trying to shove the thoughts of drowning out of his head, he picked up the soap and the sponge and began cleaning himself. That part was rather easy. He just kept his motions slow, methodical. It felt good to wipe off the sweat of fever and illness. The water became murky with soap, and that calmed him a bit too. It looked very different from seawater. 

Toothless kept careful watch over Hiccup as he bathed, occasionally butting his head into his to remind him that he was there. That comforted Hiccup greatly. He had Toothless. Everything was okay with Toothless. 

Then it came time to wash his hair. Hiccup gripped the sides of the tub. Maybe if he had his hands there as an anchor, it would help him realize that he wasn’t drowning, that he could come back up at any time. 

Looking at Toothless, shaking, Hiccup took a deep breath, and dunked his head under. 

Oh gods, oh gods, he was back in the diving bell. He was dying. He wouldn’t be able to hold his breath forever. The water would enter his lungs, hurt him, kill him. 

Hiccup yanked himself up into a sitting position, water streaming off of him, his mouth gaping in huge gasps of air. He could breathe, he could breathe! Toothless was there, rubbing his snout against him, probably wanting to lick him too. Hiccup grabbed him, held him to him. A sob wrenched itself from his body, and it made his weakened lungs ache. 

He felt so stupid and weak. Washing his gods-damned hair was enough to make him panic and cry. No, he couldn’t be weak, he couldn’t be. So, he quickly scrubbed soap into his hair, and then pushed himself back under. And he stayed under longer this time, scrubbing the soap out of his hair. He held his breath, his face scrunched up. His lungs hurt. He could hear his heart throbbing in his ears. 

Hiccup came back up, breathing hard. He wiped wet hair out of his eyes, looked at Toothless, and Toothless pressed his nose to his. Hiccup breathed out a relieved sigh. He would be okay. 


End file.
